Kebahan Dayak. Melawi River Basin, Central Kalimantan, Borneo Island, Indonesia.
Hardwood. Full H: 10' (305 cm). Full L: 8" (244 cm).

Ancestral shrine with the head and tail of a water snake (representing the lower world) at each end of the lid.
There is a hornbill (representing the upper world) perched on a post on at the center of the lid.
These two powerful guardian spirits would have escorted and protected the deceased on their journey to the afterlife.
There is a carving a of standing figure on the post, that would have representing a captive or slave that would have been
tied to the post as a sacrifice, a practice banned by the colonial authorities in the 19th century.

Ex: Jack Sadovnic collection.

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